'I had to do something': Turkish volunteer feeds Japan earthquake victims

Staff members of Takeuchi Farm, who come from Okayama Prefecture to voluntarily help evacuees, cook food for the evacuees at an evacuation centre, in the aftermath of an earthquake, in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan, January 5, 2024. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

WAJIMA, Japan (Reuters) - On a chilly Friday morning in the quake-hit Japanese town of Wajima, Aydin Muhammet and his employees served steaming bowls of soup and rice in front of a community centre for evacuees.

The Turkish national's 10-man volunteer team from the construction company he owns in central Japan has been at work since Thursday afternoon, offering victims their first hot meals since a magnitude 7.6 earthquake levelled much of their city on New Year's Day.